Turkish cuisine, along with its French and Chinese counterparts,
is one of the world¡¦s most important culinary influences. It is
a legacy of an empire that once controlled large stretches of
the Spice Road, and an imperial kitchen that drew from chefs from
as far away as Vienna and western China.
When the Ottomans controlled the entire eastern Mediterranean
basin, imperial chefs were able to raid the ingredients and cuisines
of Greece, the Balkans, the Caucasus and the Levant for inspiration,
fired by the continual quest for imperial approval. The culinary
range encountered in Istanbul today is palace food that long ago
made its way beyond the imperial quarters and into the kitchens
of the citizenry.
One of the most pleasurable ways to explore Turkish cuisine is
to feast on meze (hors d'oeuvre). At many restaurants a tray or
cart is brought over from which choices are made and transferred
to the table. Portions are small, allowing you to taste a wide
variety of dishes in one sitting. It's quite acceptable to just
stick with meze throughout the evening, calling the waiter and
his tray back to your table and never ordering any mains.
Mezes come in all shapes and sizes, the most common being dolma
(peppers or vine leaves stuffed with rice), patlican salata (aubergine
in tomato sauce), and acili (a mixture of tomato paste, onion,
chili and parsley), as well as seafood salads and pickled fish.
The best places for meze tend to be meyhanes, traditional taverna-type
restaurants where music and long drawn-out meals are the norm.
These are heavily concentrated in and around the atmospheric Nevizade
Sokak, a short walk from Taksim along Istanbul¡¦s most famous shopping
street, Istiklal Caddesi.
Another Istanbul dining experience that should not be missed
is Ottoman cuisine - elaborate dishes that originated in the kitchens
of the sultan's palace. It's a broad cuisine that is hard to define.
Take, for example, tavuk goksu, a delicate sweet pastry filled
with a cream made from thinly shredded chicken breast, pulverized
almonds and vanilla. This is a cuisine of excess.
Turkish desserts are wonderful. Those with a sweet tooth will
find every imaginable concoction at a pastane (sweet-shop), including
honey-soaked baklava, sutlac (a rice pudding also widely available
in restaurants), asure, a rosewater jelly laced with pulses, raisins
and nuts, and the best-known Turkish sweet, lokum (known outside
Turkey as Turkish delight) ¡V solidified sugar and pectin, flavored
with rosewater, pistachio or hazelnut and sprinkled with powdered
sugar.
Tipping and reservations
Tipping is expected. Ten per cent is generally sufficient. Sometimes
it's already figured into the bill. In high-end restaurants, tipping
is expected in addition to the added service charge. Reservations
are normally a must on Friday and Saturday evenings.
Asir
Kalyoncu Kullugu Caddesi 94/1, off Tarlabasi Bulvari, Beyoglu
212 297 0557
Open 12:00 ¡V 24:00 daily.
Main courses $11-$15.
Famous for its meze, including an excellent topik, an Armenian
puree of chicken, chickpea, cinnamon, currants and spices, and
excellent ezme, finely chopped tomato, hot pepper, onion and walnut.
Galata Restaurant
Orhan Apaydin Sokak 11-13, Tunel, Beyoglu
212 293 1139
Open 19:30 ¡V 24:00, Mon-Sat; closed Sun.
Small but popular meyhane in a restored historic building with
live music each night. There is a set meal of meze or two alternative
main dishes and desserts. Reservations are a must at weekends.
The quintessential backstreet meyhane, and a great place to become
acqua?nted w?th meze and raki (Turkey¡¦s hard liquor of choice
made from anis seed). Black Sea fish dishes a speciality.
Yakup 2
Asmalimescit Sokak 35/37, Beyoglu
212 249 2925
Open Oct-May 12:00 -01:30 Mon-Sat; closed Sun.
Main courses $4-$12.
Atmospheric meyhane with a vast selection of excellent mezes.
Take your pick from octopus salad, sauteed carrots in yogurt garlic
sauce, stuffed clams¡K
Asithane
Kariye Hotel, Kariye Camii Sokak 18, Edirnekapi
212 534 8414
Open 12:00 ¡V 14:00 & 19:00 ¡V 23:00 daily.
Main courses $8.
Regularly changing menu, but specialities are
all typically extravagant Ottoman offerings, including hunkar
begendi (tender lamb on a puree of aubergine), fruit-and-meat
stews, and excellent desserts. Part of a 19th-century mansion
restored as the Kariye Hotel, the Asithane has a beautiful summer
terrace and rose garden.
Excellent Ottoman menu with delicate touches.
Glorious setting next to the Bosphorus in what used to be the
Ottoman sultan's palatial grounds. Outside tables in Summer.
Haci Abdullah
Sakizagaci Caddesi 17, off Istiklal Caddesi, Beyoglu
212 293 8561
Open 11:00 ¡V 22:00 daily.
Main courses $6.
At 110 years old, it may be the oldest restaurant
in Istanbul, and probably boasts the best selection of ready-prepared
Ottoman dishes in town.
Pandeli
Misir Carsisi 1, Eminonu
212 527 3909
Open 12:00 ¡V 16:00 Mon - Sat; closed Sun.
Main courses $11.
Occupying a wonderful set of domed rooms above
the entrance of the Egyptian Market, this restaurant is the essence
of genteel old Stamboul. Worth a visit for the interior alone,
the food is also excellent - particularly its fish. The room at
the front has views across the Golden Horn.
Turkish cuisine at its most refined, with a menu
of intricately prepared, rarely seen dishes. The delicately spiced
fried prawns are recommended, as is Kuzu incik, lamb with rosemary
and tomato. Folyoda kasarli pilic, a chicken stew with mild cheese
melted over the top, is particularly good.
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